St. Cloud Financial Credit Union is committed to giving back to the communities we serve by providing financial wellness and literacy tips to people of all ages. SCFCU employees regularly meet with various age groups in local communities to share information on anything from earning, saving, and spending money, budget for expenses, investing and planning for retirement, among other topics.

SCFCU is proud to partner with Banzai, an award-winning financial education program used by millions of teachers and students nationwide to experience real-world financial lessons in a fun, safe way.

SCFCU wants to give children, adults, and families the tools needed to achieve financial success, and one way to do that is by offering this financial literacy program free to our members! Banzai is a hands-on program that teaches healthy spending habits such as planning ahead and financial responsibility, through interactive online games and activities. With this online platform at your fingertips, you have full access to its resources from anywhere and at any time.

The following courses are offered for different age groups:

Banzai Junior (grades 3-7) — Teaches how to count and manage money, as well as the basics of income, spending and borrowing in a fun, easy-to-understand way. This level provides information on how to earn and manage money through life-like scenarios, such as paying unexpected expenses and saving for the future.

Banzai Teen (grades 6-12)— Teaches the importance of saving, cutting costs, and critical thinking techniques while walking through life scenarios involving credit cards, auto loans, insurance, and more. This level provides tools to help plan for the future while navigating life’s unexpected challenges.

Banzai Plus (grades 9-12) — Teaches how to plan long term through an interactive course that covers budgeting, borrowing, and more. This level covers financial topics such as how to save money, pay off debt, fill out a W-4, and understand credit cards.

Colleges and Careers (grades 9+) — Ensures students walk away with a clear understanding of what to expect for life after high school. This level covers work experience, budgeting for college, college alternatives, decision making, scholarship, exploring career paths, internships, managing the cost of college and more.

For Parents — Banzai provides a parents and families with a powerful online curriculum that fits easily into educating wherever you are, including resources you can use for free to teach life literacy in the home.

Building Up Your Credit — Provides a short five-course tutorial teaching how to  build your credit score, what building credit can do for you, the best practices when using a credit card to boost your credit, and more.

Additional Resources

• Access Banzai Direct

• Financial Calculators

• Banzai Pocket Advisor App

• How Teachers Can Sign Up

• Starter Guide for School Sponsors of Banzai